Revenue Collection Streamlined (E-Citations)

[inteller]

this is all talking about someone else's system though. I'll apply scrutiny when I see Tulsa open its bids....unless this is a sole source bid, in which case the scrutiny needs to start now.

I will say the implementation I am reading so far sounds like something 5 years old.  Winmo 5?  Give me a break!

[carltonplace]

quote:Originally posted by inteller

quote:Originally posted by patric

The shopping list for the eCWS (e-tickets) system:

    *  Intermec CN3 mobile computer
          o Windows Mobile 5
          o 128MB RAM / 128 MB ROM
          o Verizon EVDO Radio
          o Bluetooth
          o 802.11 b/g WiFi
          o GPS
    * 2 GB MiniSD Memory Card
    * Docks and accessories
    * Zebra RW420 Bluetooth Printer
(motorcycle configuration)
http://www.in.gov/judiciary/jtac/programs/ecws-sysreq.html

The $2,000 per-unit pricetag doesnt include airtime for the Verizon or at&t wireless connection, which (at least in one state) has been linked to excessive web surfing while on the job.

The tickets are laser printed on standard 8 1/2x11" paper, so any "savings" in paper will be wiped out by the expense of buying laser cartridges.

The city council was expected to approve $400,000 of this Thursday.

oh don't worry, they won't be doing much web surfing on a WinMo 5 device.  it isn't like it is an iPhone or some ****.

But it does bother me greatly that they are going with verizon which has some of the most notoriously high data plans in the business.  Sprint is a little better.  However, this is another reason for muni wi-fi.  The devices should be capable of storing tickets outside of a hotspot range and then sync up when they are near a hotspot.  for the monthly cost of verizon data per unit, you could get into the muni wifi business pretty quick.

Would these have to use the wi-fi option? Can't you just take them back to base and download the tickets?

[nathanm]

quote:Originally posted by inteller


I will say the implementation I am reading so far sounds like something 5 years old.  Winmo 5?  Give me a break!

Why exactly does this sort of application need WM6? Seems like more room for bugs to me.

[patric]

quote:Originally posted by nathanm
Why exactly does this sort of application need WM6? Seems like more room for bugs to me.

Maybe because Micro$oft doled out grant money to the software developers?
http://www.e-citation.net/?adwords&gclid=CJSr5bGPtpYCFSYMDQodpi3OLw

They will even give you the source code.
Im waiting to see it in the hands of some bright 14-year old with a grudge against his school.


Here's another "buy our product and watch the money roll in" -type ad that must have caught Councilor Eagleton's eye:

eCitations: your ticket to increased revenues and productivity.
http://www.motorolaradiosolutions.com/pdf/solutions/municipalities/AB-eCitation_v2.pdf

[inteller]

quote:Originally posted by nathanm

quote:Originally posted by inteller


I will say the implementation I am reading so far sounds like something 5 years old.  Winmo 5?  Give me a break!

Why exactly does this sort of application need WM6? Seems like more room for bugs to me.

no Winmo 6 would be an improvement..5 is clunky junk.

[nathanm]

quote:Originally posted by inteller


no Winmo 6 would be an improvement..5 is clunky junk.

Yes, but old, well tested clunky junk. Sort of like Pocket PC 2003. It works fine if it does what you need it to do. (as in, if you don't need a 1x card)

[inteller]

quote:Originally posted by nathanm

quote:Originally posted by inteller


no Winmo 6 would be an improvement..5 is clunky junk.

Yes, but old, well tested clunky junk. Sort of like Pocket PC 2003. It works fine if it does what you need it to do. (as in, if you don't need a 1x card)

as an owner of a device that came with winmo 5 and now has 6 on it, I can say without a doubt that 6 is much better than 5.

but back to the topic at hand, there is no reason they need expensive data plans.  either sync the phone via wifi or cradle it at the end of the shift and process the tickets through some batch program.  it is silly that they are going with verizon when ATT has better coverage in Tulsa.  verizon has only been in this market for a few years and has a skeleton patchwork of towers.

[patric]

Another vendor brochure for a revenue-hungry city council to drool over:
http://www.groupmobile.com/docs/products/MC70.pdf

The picture of the guy being fingerprinted in his car with a mobile device reminds me a bit of the DNA scanners in GATTACA.  How far off can that be now?

[Hoss]

quote:Originally posted by inteller

quote:Originally posted by nathanm

quote:Originally posted by inteller


no Winmo 6 would be an improvement..5 is clunky junk.

Yes, but old, well tested clunky junk. Sort of like Pocket PC 2003. It works fine if it does what you need it to do. (as in, if you don't need a 1x card)

as an owner of a device that came with winmo 5 and now has 6 on it, I can say without a doubt that 6 is much better than 5.

but back to the topic at hand, there is no reason they need expensive data plans.  either sync the phone via wifi or cradle it at the end of the shift and process the tickets through some batch program.  it is silly that they are going with verizon when ATT has better coverage in Tulsa.  verizon has only been in this market for a few years and has a skeleton patchwork of towers.

Verizon's cell service hasn't even been here that long.  Didn't it start up back in February?

[inteller]

it has been here a little longer than that....but still no where near as mature as sprint or ATT.  Sure, verizon roams on Sprint but last time I checked data doesn't roam across networks, only voice.

so you are looking at expensive, poor coverage data plans.

either cradle at the end of the day or find a wifi hotspot.

if memory serves me correctly, Tulsa as a MOTOmesh wifi network.  Not sure if that is just downtown (where I see it in SSID lists) or all over town.  But if they already have a MOTOmesh all over town, EVDO is absolutely NOT needed.

[swake]

quote:Originally posted by inteller

it has been here a little longer than that....but still no where near as mature as sprint or ATT.  Sure, verizon roams on Sprint but last time I checked data doesn't roam across networks, only voice.

so you are looking at expensive, poor coverage data plans.

either cradle at the end of the day or find a wifi hotspot.

if memory serves me correctly, Tulsa as a MOTOmesh wifi network.  Not sure if that is just downtown (where I see it in SSID lists) or all over town.  But if they already have a MOTOmesh all over town, EVDO is absolutely NOT needed.

Verizon actually roams on US Cellular

[patric]

One of the E-Citations vendors was offering a choice of EVDO and EDGE, EDGE being the slower predecessor to at&t's 3G.

But with all the hardware, toner upkeep and data expense, the cost of writing single ticket has got to be a lot more than it was when it was just a couple of carbons.  They will have to have more roadblocks just to get ahead...

Well, at least the handheld fingerprint devices dont draw blood yet...

[patric]

Im reading now that the money to fund e-Citations is being taken away from the crime labs.
Does this mean no more 24-hour DNA test results next time a serial rapist is on the loose?

What a statement this makes as to our priorities.

[nathanm]

quote:Originally posted by inteller

  But if they already have a MOTOmesh all over town, EVDO is absolutely NOT needed.

It's not all over town. For the little amount of data they should need for these things, there is no difference between EDGE and EV-DO, so they should use whichever carrier has the least expensive data.

There is EV-DO data roaming, FWIW, although at&t has usually been better about making sure they have roaming agreements for data where they don't have their own coverage. They almost never allow in market roaming, but that shouldn't matter in the least, since at least USCC and at&t have no outdoor coverage issues anywhere in town that I've been.

Before Cingular bought ATTWS, both of those networks did have issues, especially the Cingular 1900MHz network.

[patric]

"We are saving lives," City Councilor John Eagleton said. "We have 8 fewer traffic fatalities for 2010 than the average of the previous 10 years. We're saving lives, making Tulsa safer to drive, making money, it's a win."

The success of the program is causing backups in the prosecutor's office, which is planning to hire more people to handle the load.
http://www.newson6.com/story/14390727/tulsa-police

Maybe we need a real accounting to see if all the hidden costs of E-citations end up actually costing more.
And as far as safety, how is exposing officers to more traffic stops per hour "safer" for them?